The extract below is from the Agenda of the Woollahra Municipal Council Local Traffic Committee 4th November 2003.

Item No.	Subject	File.No	Recommendation	Reason for Change	Existing Restrictions	Proposed Restrictions	Source of Funds
Y1-9	19 Sutherland Av. Paddington 'No Parking'	438.19	That the 'No Parking' zone across the entrance to 19 Sutherland Av. remain in place to ensure emergency access to the property.	Council has received a request from neighbours of 19 Sutherland Av to remove the 4 meter long 'No Parking' restriction across the entrance gate to 19 Sutherland Av. The entrance to 19 Sutherland Av. is immediately off the footpath of the street.  The footpath in this location is 0.8 meters wide and if there are vehicles parked across the entrance, access to the property is restricted. Mrs. O'Connor, the owner of 19 Sutherland Ave. is concerned that her access to the property would be restricted and that emergency access would not be possible if the restriction were removed.	'No Parking'	No Change	Nil.

What happened at that meeting.

I was invited to address the meeting.   I had previously presented copies of the petition to WMC Traffic Engineer Mr. Yonge.  I raised the issue of the the parking spaces mentioned in the petition, however chairman Mr. Hatton of WMC advised that the meeting was there to consider only the "No Standing" zone in front of 19 Sutherland Avenue.

I advised that Mrs. O'Connor had complained circa 1984 to councilors when a Holden utility had been parked across her frontage for two or three weeks.  I said that it would have been known to the councilors who established the "No Standing" zone that Mrs. O'Connor did not nor was likely to purchase a car.  I advised that I had been told at the time by a council employee that consideration had been given to the fact that Mrs. O'Connor did not have a car when the "No Standing" zone was established.

I explained that Mrs. O'Connor's son had now returned to 19 Sutherland Avenue, and had a car, and was parking it on neighbour's frontages with no fear of like retaliation.  I also pointed out that other homes (Nos. 11, 13, 17, 23, 29, 31, 33 and 35) in Sutherland Avenue also suffered the inconvenience of not having emergency access when cars parked across their frontages, yet their occupants obviously felt that the benefit of having convenient parking outweighed the inconvenience.

Mrs. Attuell, who is Clover Moore's representative, asked Mr Hatton whether there was not an informal policy established at an earlier meeting, "..that properties in Paddington with narrow footpaths should not get 'No Standing' zones, because of the chaos that this would cause to parking."

Chairman Hatton agreed that might be the case, but stated that there had been no formal policy established.

Chairman Hatton suggested a compromise, that the Easternmost (uphill) 'No Standing' zone be moved west by one meter.  This would permit Mrs. O'Connor's son to park legally, partly in front of No. 21 Sutherland Avenue, and partly in front of his own house at 19 Sutherland Avenue.  Mrs. O'Connor's gate would not be blocked by that adjustment.  I agreed that might solve the problem.  Mr. Younge, the traffic engineer, was requested to look into the situation.

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